June 22nd

1944: President Franklin D. Roosevelt signs the G.I. Bill of Rights, offering educational opportunities for World War II vets.

1945: The Battle of Okinawa ends with an Allied victory

1970: President Richard Nixon signs a bill lowering the voting age to eighteen.

John Hinderaker, Powerline: Frivolous Claims of Executive Privilege

“Today Deputy Attorney General James Cole advised Darrell Issa, Chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, that the Department of Justice will not respond to the committee’s subpoena of certain documents relating to the Fast and Furious scandal. Instead, the Obama administration is asserting a claim of executive privilege for the reasons laid out in Eric Holder’s letter to President Obama dated June 19.

“Holder’s letter is a remarkable document. Viewed from a strictly technical standpoint, it is a terrible piece of legal work. Its arguments are weak at best; in some cases, they are so frivolous as to invite the imposition of sanctions if they were asserted in court. I will explain why momentarily, but first this observation: if an opposing party requests documents that plainly are protected by a privilege, a lawyer will routinely assert the privilege, on principle, even though there is nothing hurtful to his case in those documents. On the other hand, a lawyer will not assert a lousy claim of privilege unless he badly wants to keep the documents in question out of the opponent’s hands because of their damaging nature. If I am correct that the administration’s assertion of executive privilege is baseless, it is reasonable to infer that the documents, if made public, would be highly damaging to President Obama, Attorney General Holder, or other senior administration officials…”

John Sexton, BigGovt: Another Holder Retraction

“On Monday, the Department of Justice was forced to once again retract information provided to Congress about the Fast and Furious scandal.

On June 12th, Attorney General Holder had a heated exchange with Sen. Cornyn during congressional testimony. Senator Cornyn offered a litany of complaints with AG Holder’s performance and then concluded by asking for his resignation. Ironically, Holder responded by saying Sen. Cornyn’s statement was “breathtaking in its inaccuracy,” then went on to offer an inaccurate response…”

Neil Kulakowski, Breitbart: “Executive Privilege” to Blow Up

“…As I’ve written before, there are two types of executive privilege. One is a strong form rooted in the Constitution, called the presidential communication privilege. But there is another type, much weaker and rooted in common law instead of the Constitution, called the deliberative process privilege. That second, weaker variety is what President Obama invoked today regarding Holder.

It’s still the White House asserting the privilege, because only the president can assert executive privilege for his entire administration. (Except that the vice president can also assert it, but only for matters directly involving the VP.) So Obama has invoked it on Holder’s behalf. ..”

“Barack Obama’s Department of Justice is up to its secret ways again. Last year, six Muslims in south Florida were arrested and charged with sending tens of thousands of dollars to fund the Taliban in Afghanistan. Now, as Judicial Watch reports, the DOJ has dropped charges against one of them — but when questioned why, the DOJ has stonewalled and remained silent.

The head of the funding operation is a Pakistani imam, Hafiz Muhammed Sher Ali Khan, who ran a mosque in Miami. The others charged were members of his family: his sons, his daughter, and his grandson…”

Michele Bachmann, RedState: Obama’s Blatant Disregard…

Thanks Ted,

“In order to become President, Barack Obama had to swear to preserve, protect and defend the Constitution. But three years later, I am disgusted with the disregard that the President continues to show to our Constitution. Has he forgotten about the separation of executive, judicial and legislative branches found in our founding document? Our founders gave us a system of checks and balances so that one person could never seize more power than was provided in the Constitution.

“President Obama’s actions demonstrate that he thinks he’s above the law. When he doesn’t get his way, he creates new policies to his liking…”

Michelle Malkin, NRO: BO’s Convention Disaster

“There aren’t Greek columns tall or wide enough to camouflage Barack Obama’s impending North Carolina catastrophe. In September, the campaigner-in-chief will travel to Charlotte for his party’s presidential-nominating convention. For once, the incurable jet-setter may wish he had stayed home.

Obama’s stage managers envision a triumphant, unifying coronation reminiscent of their 2008 DNC production in Denver. But the southern swing state is turning into a Democratic disaster zone…”

David Goldman, PJM: Saudis Saved Egypt?

“Saudi Arabia just may have pulled America’s chestnuts out of the fire.

“Just before Egypt’s military restored its power earlier this month, Saudi Arabia gave the beleaguered country just enough aid to keep the economy afloat for the time being. On June 2, the Saudis put $1 billion into Egypt’s foreign exchange reserves and bought $500 million in Egyptian government bonds on June 4. And on June 8, the Saudis announced that Egypt could use a $750 million credit line to import fuel “based on the severe oil-products shortage faced by Egypt,” according to an emailed statement from the Saudi Embassy in Cairo.

“These gifts are droplets compared to Egypt’s $20 billion hemorrhage of foreign exchange reserves since the fall of Hosni Mubarak in early 2011, but of critical importance. As the Saudi statement noted, a severe shortage of diesel oil threatened, in turn, to reduce food supplies, and spot shortages of bread were reported in May. The Muslim Brotherhood took advantage of critical shortages to expand its power on the Egyptian street, as I reported in the Asia Times on May 1st (“The horror and the pita”). Saudi aid gives critical leverage and credibility to the military. On June 16, Egypt’s military ordered the dissolution of parliament after the country’s Supreme Constitutional Court declared invalid the election that returned a three-quarters majority of Islamists.

“President Barack Obama’s new de facto amnesty for young illegals will create a logistical nightmare when it is implemented, according to a chorus of legislators and policy analysts.

“The new program, initiated by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and announced by President Obama, will bring nearly one million new people into the offices of the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS).

“Meanwhile, a deferred action — whereby DHS decides at its discretion against deporting or prosecuting an individual — must be done for free for every new applicant.

“Amid all of this, a continuing hiring freeze at all levels of the federal government means that USCIS won’t be allowed to hire any new employees to deal with the influx of new immigration cases…”

“…The game changer here was Marco Rubio, said Ali Noorani, executive director of the National Immigration Forum, one of a number of groups that has been pushing the White House on reform. He was a legitimate conservative trying to find a solution to the broken immigration system and the administration realized they had to do something.

“White House sources dismissed the idea that the president acted under pressure from Rubio, saying that the fate of the yet-to-be-filed legislation was unclear. Still, the White House clearly seized the chance to gain the upper hand on the Dream Act while Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney dithered on whether to back Rubio’s proposal and the senator scrambled to file the legislation.

“‘The big takeaway from this is that it doesn’t pay to be a friend of Democrats, and it doesn’t pay to be a friend of Republicans,’ Noorani added. ‘We were able to ping-pong back and forth between Rubio and the White House’….”

NewsPress: Romney Peddles Green Cards

“…Romney said he hopes to crack down more on illegal immigration, including pushing for a border fence and strengthening efforts to find people who enter legally but overstay visas. Romney also tempered his remarks in light of his audience.

“‘I’m going to address the problem of illegal immigration in a civil, and resolute, manner,’ he said.

“But he spent most of his time talking about making it easier for legal immigrants to come to America, and making a case for the necessity of welcoming them.

“‘I will prioritize efforts that strengthen legal immigration and make it more transparent and easier,’ Romney said. ‘…Too many families are caught in a broken system. For those seeking to come to America the right way, that kind of bureaucratic nightmare has to end.’

“Also, more non-citizens would be able to stay legally in the United States under Romney’s plan because he would exempt from current numerical caps on green cards the spouses and minor children of green card holders.

“Romney also pledged to find a path to legal citizenship for any immigrant who serves in the U.S. military, and argued that visas ought to be automatic for science and technology students who come here to be educated – and under current rules then often go home to create jobs in other countries because they’re not allowed to stay.

“‘I’d staple a green card to the diploma of someone who gets an advanced degree in America,’ Romney said, after noting that a huge number of new companies here are started by immigrants – about half of the top venture-funded firms, he said…”

Kimberley Strassel, WSJ: Axelrod’s ObamaCare Dollars

“Rewind to 2009. The fight over ObamaCare is raging, and a few news outlets report that something looks ethically rotten in the White House. An outside group funded by industry is paying the former firm of senior presidential adviser David Axelrod to run ads in favor of the bill. That firm, AKPD Message and Media, still owes Mr. Axelrod money and employs his son.

“The story quickly died, but emails recently released by the House Energy and Commerce Committee ought to resurrect it. The emails suggest the White House was intimately involved both in creating this lobby and hiring Mr. Axelrod’s firm—which is as big an ethical no-no as it gets…”

“Some in defense circles say it is the result of election-year politics and members of Congress will realize next year that they need to heed top Pentagon officials who have testified that they have too much infrastructure and not enough money…”

Glenn Kessler, WaPo: Four Pinocchios for Obama Campaign

“The Obama campaign apparently loves to ding former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney with the charge of “outsourcing.” On severaloccasions, we have faulted the campaign for its claims, apparently to little avail.

“Now, all of the claims have been combined in one 30-second ad, with the added incendiary charge that Romney was a “corporate raider.” Let’s look anew at this material…”

Peggy Noonan, WSJ: “Romney Can Win, But He Needs More Than Applause Lines.”

“Mr. Romney is looking good, as are his crowds. When the camera shows people in the stands behind him as he speaks, they no longer look as if they walked in off the street or put a bet on a horse and are straining to see if it breaks from the pack. Now they look like people watching their horse take the lead, with no one coming up the outside.

“The Romney strategy the past eight weeks has been, in a small way, shrewd: have the candidate out there talking in a candidate-like manner, but don’t let him say anything so interesting that it will take the cameras off Mr. Obama. The president is lurching from gaffe to mess, from bad news to worse. Don’t get in his way as he harms himself.

It’s working, but won’t for long. People want meaning, a higher and declared purpose…”

Jamie Weinstein, DailyCaller: Freedom Works Won’t Endorse Mitt

“…’FreedomWorks has not made it a practice to endorse for presidential elections, and I don’t expect we’ll deviate from tradition this year,’ FreedomWorks President Matt Kibbe told The Daily Caller. ‘Our focus elsewhere is always on electing more-conservative candidates.’

“This prohibition on endorsing presidential candidates didn’t prevent FreedomWorks from attacking Romney during the GOP primary. In fact, one of the tea party organization’s top goals was to prevent Romney from becoming the nominee. In March, as it became increasingly clear Romney would win the nomination, FreedomWorks officially dropped its strident opposition to him…”

DailyCaller: House Resolution Opposes Internet Regulations

“A resolution opposing proposals for international Internet governance was unanimously approved by the House Energy and Commerce Committee Wednesday.

The resolution, sponsored by California Republican Rep. Mary Bono Mack, currently has 58 co-sponsors. The legislation expresses ‘the sense of Congress regarding actions to preserve and advance the multistakeholder governance model under which the Internet

The 193 countries participating in the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), a U.N. agency responsible for the international governance of long-distance calls and satellite orbits, are scheduled to meet at a December conference in Dubai to renegotiate a 1988 treaty that deregulated international telecommunications and paved the way for the Internet…”

Lowman Henry: Lincoln Radio Journal

Program 12-25

“(June 23, 2012 – June 29, 2012) This week on Lincoln Radio Journal: Eric Boehm of www.paindependent.com has news headlines; David Taylor of the PA Manufacturers Association and Kevin Shivers from the PA Chapter of the National Federation of Independent Business talk with Pennsylvania Revenue Secretary Dan Meuser about a proposed tax credit to entice a petro-chemical plant to locate in the Keystone State; And, Lowman Henry has a Town Hall Commentary on state government’s mounting debt.

Patrick Kerkstra, PhillyMag: Philadelphia’s Pension Crisis

“How did Philadelphia end up as one of the poorest, least-educated, highest-taxed and most violent cities in the country? Blame 40 years of political cowardice—and 34,966 ex-city workers who are still collecting fat government pensions…”

Join In! – Frank Luntz Focus Group

Thanks Jody … what a great way to build a mailing list!

“From campaigns to corporate America, entertainment to elections – Frank has an unparalleled ability to hear what the American people are saying, know what they think, how they feel, and WHY. Whether you are from the right or from the left, from a red state or from a blue, a capitalist or an anarchist … we want to hear from you.
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“On WEDNESDAY, June 27th, 2012 Frank is hosting a one-of-kind TELEVISED focus group in Washington, DC to talk about current events and politics. This is your chance; your chance to engage, participate and play a meaningful role in helping us know what kind of entertainment you enjoy.
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“Finally, if you remember nothing else, remember this: Dr. Luntz and all of us at Luntz Global value your privacy. That’s why at no time will your information be shared with third party vendors.
“Let us prove our commitment to accountability to you. If you wish to be uninvited from future invitations, then you need only send an email to this address: info@luntzglobal.com . We’ll take care of the rest.
Thank you, Luntz Global

Needed: George Patton…

Colonel Henry Knox, a former Boston book merchant, moved cannons across the Delaware and up and down iced hills for Washington’s attack on Trenton. The cannons, perhaps inspired by both cash registers and Knox’s spirit, again gather but on the shelves of your bookstore. Matt Kibbe (CEO for Freedom Works, Hostile Takeover), Monica Crowley (former Nixon aide and hostess on WABC radio, What the (Bleep) Just Happened; Hugh Hewitt (former Reagan staffer and Salem radio host, The Brief Against Obama; David Horowitz & Jacob Laksin (The New Leviathan); David Limbaugh (Rush’s lawyer-brother); and Jonah Goldberg (NRO contributor and author of Liberal Fascism, The Tyranny of Clichés) join a mile of similar books. Devastating: Jack Cashill (Deconstructing Obama) or Dinesh D’Souza (Roots of Obama’s Rage). As for Patton, I can see him slapping a few congressmen. . .

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CATS is a conservative publication, almost free of advertising, and has appeared at least three times per week for the last six years. It consists of abstracts from the wider press, links to original sources, and sometimes, remarks by Jim Brody.